


Losing Your Memory

by stydiasforever



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-23
Updated: 2014-10-13
Packaged: 2018-02-14 08:10:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2184297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stydiasforever/pseuds/stydiasforever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fraction of a second. That was all it took for Lydia Martin’s entire world to change. That was all it took for everything she knew to disappear. That was all it took for her to lose all memory of the past year, including the world of the supernatural and her feelings for one tall, sarcastic boy. Will Stiles and her friends help her regain her memories, or will nothing be the same again?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Lydia had read once that the first sense you get back after being in a coma is hearing. She wasn’t sure if that had been a reliable source, because the first thing she was aware of when she woke was touch. Before she saw the bright lights of the hospital room, before she heard the beeping of her heart monitor, before she smelt the cup of coffee and half-eaten donut on the table next to her and before she tasted the dried blood on her lips, she could feel the warmth of someone holding her hand in their own.

She wasn’t sure why, but she felt instantly reassured. Despite not knowing where she was or how she got there, she felt strangely safe and secure. When her other senses kicked in, her eyes fluttered open. At first she squinted slightly at the fluorescent ceiling lights, and then she turned her head to the left. She did a slight double take, furrowing her eyebrows.

What the hell was Stiles Stilinski doing there? And _why_ was he holding her hand?

He was sleeping soundly in the armchair at her bedside, and after looking at him for a few seconds she noticed several major differences from the Stiles Stilinski she remembered. For one, his hair was much longer and gelled up slightly. His shoulders were broader and his arms more muscular, which was apparent in the short-sleeved t-shirt he wore. He looked visibly older, which made absolutely no sense. Lydia had seen him that night at the formal…hadn’t she?

Starting to feel slightly nervous and uncomfortable, Lydia slid her hand out of his and began looking around the room. Where was Jackson? Where was her mother? They should’ve been there.

Stiles woke as he felt Lydia pull away from him, rubbing his eyes briefly before sitting up straight in his chair. Lydia watched his eyes light up with an emotion she couldn’t quite identify-relief, maybe?-and his lips spread into a smile.

“Lydia,” he breathed, placing his hand on her arm. “Thank God. You scared me.”

“What happened?” Lydia asked, her eyes shifting uncomfortably. “What are you doing here?”

“You were in a car accident and-wait, what do you mean ‘what am I doing here?’” Stiles asked, his eyes widening in concern and surprise.

Why was he so surprised? Of course she was wondering what he was doing there. She was also wondering how he’d changed his appearance so drastically in what couldn’t have been more than a day or two and why he had just told her she was in a car accident when she distinctly remembered being attacked by some sort of animal on the lacrosse field and Jackson bringing her to the hospital.

“I mean exactly what I said,” Lydia stated, her eyes narrowing. “Where’s my mom, is she here? And Jackson?”

Now Stiles looked extremely worried. “ _Jackson?_ Lydia…” his eyes flashed with registration as his mind put the pieces together. “Lydia, do you know what day it is today? And what year?”

She glared at him in disbelief. Why on earth was this relevant? “It’s…” she paused for a moment to remember the date. “February seventh, two thousand and eleven. Now that I’ve helped you figure out the date, can you please tell me what’s going on?’

Stiles’ jaw dropped, his eyes widening in fear. “Oh my God. This isn’t possible.”

Lydia only felt more confused now, especially since Stiles looked unsure about whether he should scream, cry or get help. He apparently decided on the third option, because he pressed the button for the nurse and began pacing the room. A brunette woman wearing hospital scrubs and her hair in a curly ponytail appeared only moments later. After a moment, Lydia recognized her as Scott McCall’s mother, Melissa. She had seen her at lacrosse games and other school events, and she recalled Allison mentioning something about Scott’s mom working at the hospital.

“Lydia, you’re awake!” Melissa said with a wide smile. “How are you feeling, honey?”

Lydia began to play with her hospital bracelet, confused as to why this woman she barely knew was acting as if they were close friends.

“Uh, fine, I guess.”

“Melissa, remember what the doctor said? About what could happen when she woke up?” Stiles asked her with the same concerned expression.

Melissa nodded. “Yes, Stiles, but-” she met Stiles’ gaze and her face fell. “She…”

Stiles nodded, running a hand through his hair in distress and glancing back over at a still very confused Lydia. “She said the date was February seventh of two thousand and eleven. That’s the day of the winter formal.”

“Can someone please fill me in?” Lydia asked, crossing her arms in annoyance.

Melissa whispered something to Stiles and the tall boy nodded before turning and walking out the door. She then took a few steps towards Lydia and sat down next to her, giving her a warm, motherly look.

“Lydia, sweetheart…” she said softly. “The date is June third. Of two thousand and twelve.”

Lydia’s lips moved to protest. What was she talking about? There was no way Lydia was in a coma for an entire year. Before she could get any words out, Melissa spoke again.

“I think you have amnesia.”


	2. Chapter 2

The next twenty-four hours were a blur for Lydia. As soon as Melissa went to go get a doctor and her mother, tons of doctors and nurses began running various tests and procedures to determine the seriousness of her amnesia. The entire time, all Lydia wanted was for it to be over. She wanted to wake up in her own bed and have all of this be a dream, because there was just no way she forgot more than a year of her life. That was ridiculous.

“Alright, Lydia, we have your test results,” said her doctor, a tall man with short black hair and glasses. Her mother was now sitting in the chair next to her, looking more anxious than she was. “I’m afraid you do have amnesia caused by the severity of your head trauma. It’s retrograde amnesia, which means-”

“The inability to retrieve information that was acquired before a particular date,” Lydia finished, easily reciting the definition from her textbook.

The doctor gave her a small smile. “Your friend out there wasn’t kidding when he said you were smart.”

Lydia instantly knew the doctor was referring to Stiles, who was apparently _still_ in the waiting room. Sure, it was sweet that he was still there, but a little uncalled for in her opinion. She knew he had a crush on her, but sleeping in a hospital chair for days seemed extreme. Then again, she had no idea what had happened between them since the night of the formal. Maybe they really were friends now.

“Do you know how long it could take?” her mother asked, looking to the doctor nervously. “For her memory to return, I mean.”

The doctor sighed, shaking his head. “Unfortunately, I don’t. It could take weeks, months, maybe even longer. It most likely won’t all come back at once, it’ll return in pieces. Certain things will trigger specific memories; sights, sounds, smells. Spending a lot of time with people close to you is advisable.”

Lydia frowned, a chill going up her spine. _Months?_ She couldn’t wait months for a year’s worth of memories to return. She would go insane.

“You should try to get some sleep,” the doctor instructed her in a soft tone. “I know today has been exhausting for you.”

Lydia looked to her mother, who nodded with a reassuring smile. “Get some rest, honey. Everything’s going to be okay.”

-

When Lydia woke the next morning, she expected to see her mother sitting next to her. However, the person in the armchair next to her bed wasn’t her mother; nor was it hospital staff or Stiles (the only people she’d seen since waking up, to her extreme displeasure.) It was Scott McCall. Her best friend’s boyfriend, the co-captain of the lacrosse team and the guy she’d made out with in Coach’s office. She wondered how her relationship with him had changed over the past year. For all she knew, they were best friends now too.

“Scott?” she said, sitting up.

He grinned at her, shifting closer. “Hey, Lydia.”

“Where’s my mom?”

“I told her to go home and get some sleep,” Scott explained. “She’ll be back in a few hours. How are you doing?”

Lydia shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m kind of freaking out, but I’m mostly just confused.”

Scott nodded in understanding, placing a hand over top of hers. “Stiles and I were thinking it might be a good idea if I filled you in on some things. There are some things that…your mom doesn’t know about. A lot has changed since last year.”

Lydia furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “Scott, what are you talking about?”

“Let’s start from the beginning,” Scott said gently. “This is a lot to take in, so just stop me whenever you want to ask about something.”

Lydia nodded for him to go on, both curious and confused.

“Just before Allison moved to Beacon Hills last year, something happened to me,” Scott said slowly. “Stiles and I were out in the woods at night, and I got bitten by something. We realized after a while that it was a werewolf, which is what I turned into and am now. I realize this sounds crazy, but I swear it’s true.”

Lydia blinked, trying to hold back her laughter. “A werewolf? Scott, is this some weird attempt to make me laugh, because-”

“I’m serious,” Scott said, looking her directly in the eye. Lydia wasn’t sure why, but she felt…convinced. Something about the way Scott looked at her and the tone of his voice made something so insane sound believable. But… _werewolves?_ Really?

“Okay,” Lydia said quietly. “Keep going.”

“Allison’s family turned out to be werewolf hunters, which as you can imagine caused a lot of problems. Allison’s aunt Kate was kind of an evil psychopath, and then Peter, Derek Hale’s uncle, also known as the man who attacked you on the lacrosse field and tortured you for weeks to return from the dead, killed her,” Scott said, pausing again to make sure she was caught up.

“He tortured me?” Lydia asked nervously. “How?”

“I’m getting to that,” Scott said. “This part’s going to be even harder to swallow, so I need you to stay calm.” When Lydia nodded in agreement, he continued. “When you got bitten by Peter, you didn’t turn into a werewolf. You turned into a banshee.”

“Banshee?” Lydia wrinkled her nose, finding this story to be less and less believable by the minute. “What’s that?”

“It means you can predict death,” Scott explained. “You feel someone dying, and you scream. It’s been kind of a blessing and a curse, because sometimes you can predict it far enough in advance that we can prevent it from happening…but sometimes we can’t.”

“So I’m a banshee,” Lydia repeated with a hint of skepticism, “what about Jackson and Allison? Where are they now?”

“Jackson wanted to become a werewolf, but he ended up turning into a Kanima, which is basically a giant lizard,” Scott went on, ignoring her raised eyebrows. “He was sort of, uh, cured of that, and then he moved to London. So you guys never really got back together.”

Lydia felt a pang in her chest, her heart sinking. She had always believed that she and Jackson were going to end up together. The fact that he would just move away, especially if everything Scott was saying was true, devastated her.

“Now…what I’m about to tell you is kind of…shocking,” Scott said, his eyes flooding with unmistakeable pain.

“This is all shocking, Scott,” Lydia retorted, laying her head back and trying to process all of this information.

“Back in October, Stiles was…possessed. By a Japanese demon. I’ll tell you more about that another time, because I know that I’m already overwhelming you, but something happened,” Scott said in a much lower voice. “Allison was fighting one of those demons, and she...she was killed.”

The pain she had felt after hearing about Jackson was nothing compared to what she felt now. This wasn’t real. Scott had to be making this up. There was no way Allison could be dead without her remembering it. It was impossible.

“You’re lying,” Lydia whispered, her arms and legs covered in goose bumps. “None of this is real, Scott, it can’t be. That’s impossible.”

“I wish I was lying,” Scott murmured, taking her hand, “but I’m not. And I knew the longer I put off telling you everything, the harder it would be. I’m so sorry, Lydia.”

She felt tears begin to build in her eyes and she shook her head, pulling her hand away from him. “I would remember if my best friend died. I would remember if my boyfriend left. I would remember if you were a _werewolf.”_

“Lydia, I need you to believe me,” Scott said softly, “I saw you get through all of that once before. It’s going to be hard, but I know you can do it again. And you have me and Stiles to help you through it.”

“Just stop!” Lydia screamed, tears streaming down her face. “I barely know you, I barely know Stiles, and you’re both acting like you know everything about me and telling me ridiculous stories about werewolves and banshees and…just _stop_.”

Scott backed away with a hurt expression, nodding his head.

“I know that you’re overwhelmed,” Scott said, standing up. “When you’re ready to talk, just call me. You’re going to get through this.”

Lydia wiped the tears from her eyes, staring blankly at the wall as Scott left the room. She wished that she could believe him.


	3. Chapter 3

The longer Lydia laid in her bed, staring up at the ceiling while her head spun, the more she believed Scott. All of the puzzle pieces fit together. The mysterious animal attacks in Beacon Hills, Jackson’s sudden change of behaviour, Allison’s family’s unusual secretiveness. The more she thought about it, the more everything he said made sense.

She also began to regret snapping at Scott, everything had just been overwhelming (to say the least.) She figured losing Jackson and Allison had taken her lots of time to heal, so losing them both in a matter of minutes was more than she could handle. She knew that Scott would understand, she just felt bad. He was only trying to help her, after all.

Eventually the door to her room swung open again, and while part of her hoped Scott had returned, she expected it to be her mother. To her surprise, the boy standing in the doorway was none other than Stiles Stilinski (who, according to Melissa when she had last came to check in on her, had left the hospital a total of two times since her accident: to shower and to eat.)

“Hi,” he said carefully, approaching her slowly as if he was walking on eggshells. He was holding a small paper bag in his hand.

“Scott told you about my breakdown?” Lydia inferred, propping herself up with her elbows.

Stiles sighed, taking a seat next to her and running a hand through his hair. “Lydia, you had every right to be upset. Scott feels terrible, we just thought the sooner we told you everything, the better. If you have any questions, you can ask me.”

Truthfully, Lydia had millions of questions. She just had no idea where to start, so she settled for one that she knew he could answer and would be less likely to end with her in tears…again.

“What’s in the bag?”

Stiles smiled slightly, opening up the brown paper bag and taking out a chocolate-chip muffin. “Thought you might be sick of hospital food.”

Lydia felt herself smile-genuinely smile-for the first time since she’d woken up in that damn hospital room. She accepted the muffin from him and took a big bite, savouring the delicious taste that simply could not be compared to the dull hospital food she’d been eating.

“Is this from Rossini’s?” Lydia asked, referring to her favourite bakery in town. “How did you know that I-” She stopped mid-sentence, cursing herself once again for forgetting. “Right. We’re friends now.”

“Yeah, it’s hard not to get close with someone when you’re fighting supernatural villains together on a regular basis,” Stiles chuckled lightly. “How are you doing with that, by the way?”

Lydia shrugged, taking another large bite of the treat he’d brought her. “I don’t know how to deal with it. I know Scott wasn’t lying, it just seems…well, it seems impossible.”

“That’s what I thought at first, too,” Stiles said, “It’s a lot to take in.”

“Is there anything I should know about you?” Lydia asked him with a raised eyebrow. “You’re not a vampire or anything, right?”

Stiles laughed again, shaking his head. “Just human, don’t worry.”

“Well, that makes one of us,” Lydia muttered, fiddling with the hem of her hospital gown. “I don’t even know what a banshee is, yet I am one.”

“I’ll tell you everything,” Stiles promised her. “I just think you should wait for everything else to sink in first.” He reached out to her, possibly to hold her hand, but he stopped himself before it got there and rested it on the arm of his chair instead.

“So, you really are my best friend?” Lydia asked him, trying to sound as inoffensive as possible. “When did that happen?”

“Yeah,” Stiles nodded, shifting in his seat. “It, uh, I guess it happened pretty gradually. We only got really close when you found out about the supernatural and then we sort of became partners when it came to solving things, and then we-” he cut himself off, breaking eye contact with her and staring at the floor instead. “We’ve been good friends ever since.”

She wondered what his sudden change of expression was about, but she decided not to ask. She wasn’t exactly in a position to accuse anyone else of having mood swings.

“I should go,” Stiles announced, getting to his feet. “I’ll come by tomorrow, alright?”

Lydia nodded appreciatively. “Thanks for the muffin. And, uh, everything else.”

Stiles cracked a smile, nodding at her.

“No problem.”

Stiles walked out of the room and closed the door behind him, and for a reason unknown to Lydia, she found herself wishing that he would come back. 


	4. Chapter 4

To say that Lydia was grateful to finally get out of the hospital would be the understatement of the century. She was elated to _finally_ be home, sleep in her own bed and wear her own clothes. She had honestly felt fine for days now; the only reason the doctors had insisted on keeping her was because of her concussion (which made her hate it even more.)

Lydia’s mother had asked her about a million times if she was absolutely positive she was ready to go back to school, and each time Lydia assured her that she was more than ready. She had always been ahead of the rest of her class, academically advanced in every class she took, so adjusting to her new classes and harder curriculum wouldn’t be a problem for her. She was more nervous about the social aspect than her academics.

She knew that walking through the woods naked for days, showing up mysteriously at every murder scene and no longer hanging out with Jackson and his posse (Stiles had filled her in on all the details over the course of her time in the hospital) must have caused a decline in her popularity. She also knew that she must’ve changed the way she acted a lot over the past year if Stiles Stilinski was now her best friend, but she wasn’t sure that was a bad thing. As far as she could tell, he was a better friend than any of the ones she could remember (with the exception of Allison, of course.)

The first day back to school, Stiles picked her up at exactly eight o’clock on the dot, as promised. She would’ve driven herself if it weren’t for the fact that her car had been demolished in the accident. She was waiting anxiously, pacing her foyer in the pink floral dress and matching heels that she’d chosen to wear, when her doorbell rang. She ran to get it, forcing a smile as she opened the door and saw Stiles standing there. She didn’t want him knowing she was nervous, or he would try and convince her to wait a few days, just like her mother had.

“Hey,” she said, tightening her grip on the strap of the bag hanging off her shoulder. “You ready?”

Stiles stared at her for a moment, examining her outfit. It didn’t’ look like he was checking her out; more like her outfit had triggered some kind of memory for him.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

Stiles shook his head quickly, flashing her a smile that was visibly forced. “Nope, nothing. Let’s go, don’t wanna be late on your first day back.”

She returned the smile, deciding once again to brush off his unusual behaviour and the weird feeling that he was hiding something from her. She followed him to the Jeep and climbed into the passenger seat, trying to focus on the music coming out of the radio and not her nerves.

When they arrived at the school, Stiles ran through her schedule with her millionth time to make sure she had it memorized and told her his as well, just in case she needed him at any point throughout the day. Though his gestures were extreme, Lydia would be lying if she said she didn’t appreciate them. It was nice to know she had someone looking out for her. She wasn’t used to that feeling.

As soon as they entered the school’s main hallway, Lydia was relieved to see some familiar faces-well, one familiar face anyways. Scott was standing with his arm around a pretty Asian girl with curled hair who seemed to be laughing at a joke he’d just made. Next to her was a tall boy with light coloured hair and a big grin on his face who looked a bit familiar, and to his right was a gorgeous girl with dirty blonde hair and big brown eyes who was leaning into the tall boy’s side.

Once the group caught sight of Lydia and Stiles, they stopped their conversation abruptly. The girl who had been laughing at Scott ran up to Lydia and threw her arms around the redhead immediately.

“Lydia!” she squealed, squeezing her tightly. “You’re back!”

Lydia froze awkwardly, unsure as to whether she should hug her back or not. The girl pulled away after a second, her eyes wide.

“Oh my God, you don’t know who I am,” she muttered, covering her mouth with her hands. “I’m so sorry, this is really awkward.” She stretched out her hand. “I’m Kira.”

Lydia shook Kira’s hand, letting out a small laugh. “It’s alright. I’m Lyd-” she sighed, shaking her head. “You already know that.”

“Hey, Lyds,” the tallest boy said, grinning at her. “You probably don’t remember me, but I did ask you out one time in the ninth grade…”

Lydia thought for a moment before her eyes lit up in recognition. “Isaac! Right? Isaac Lahey. I remember that.” She admitted she felt relieved that she at least knew who one other person was.

“I’m Malia,” the tall girl next to Isaac said finally, giving her a small smile. “Nice to, uh, meet you…again.”

Lydia smiled at Malia, nodding her head. “Nice to meet you again too.”

All of these names sounded familiar, and she realized it was because Stiles had mentioned them when filling her in on all things supernatural. They seemed nice enough, and she was honestly just happy to know that she still had friends despite being a banshee or whatever the hell it was called. Maybe her day wasn’t going to be so bad after all.

-

The first few classes were a breeze, though that was to be expected. Lydia collected all the word she’d missed during her absence and had no doubt that she would complete it by the upcoming weekend. When lunch time rolled around, Stiles escorted her to a table outside that was apparently their usual lunch spot. Lydia was used to eating in the cafeteria with Jackson and his friends, so this was yet another change she would have to adjust to.

“So, how were your classes?” Scott asked her, taking a bite of one of his two burritos. She noticed that Isaac had an equally large meal, and she wondered if werewolves ate more than humans did. She added it to her growing list of questions.

“Alright,” Lydia replied, not really in the mood to talk about math and history. “So, Kira, you’re a…kitsanu?” She tried to remember the information Stiles had told her.

“Kitsune,” Kira corrected her. “I basically have control over electricity. I don’t fully understand it myself.”

Lydia just nodded, finding that to be no more ridiculous than anything else she’d learned. “And Malia, you’re a…”

“Werecoyote,” Malia said, “not that different from a werewolf, but I spent most of my life as an actual coyote in the woods until you guys saved me and helped me adjust to human life.”

Malia, who was sitting next to Lydia, reached across the table and joined hands with Isaac. Lydia noticed that Scott and Kira also had their fingers interlocked on the other side of the table.

“So, are you guys dating?” Lydia asked, gesturing to the two pairs.

The four of them all nodded. “Yeah,” Scott said, rubbing his thumb across Kira’s hand. “Well, those two have only been together for a couple of weeks.” He pointed to Isaac and Malia.

“I guess that makes us the odd ones out,” Lydia chuckled lightly, nudging Stiles’ shoulder as she twirled her spaghetti.

Stiles stood up abruptly, grabbing his half-eaten sandwich and slinging his bad over his shoulder. “I’ve got to go. I need to talk to Coach about my paper. I’ll see you guys later.”

The group immediately fell into an awkward silence, the tension undeniable. Lydia felt self-conscious, looking around the table.

“What?” she frowned. “Did I say something?”

Scott shook his head, giving her a somewhat sad smile. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.” 


	5. Chapter 5

_Lydia sat by the pool with the wind blowing through her hair and the sun in her eyes. She had a thick coating of sunscreen covering every exposed inch of her pale, easily burnt skin. She could hear laughter coming from her swimming pool, but she decided to focus on the magazine on her lap instead._

_“C’mon, Lydia, you’re missing out on all the fun!” a voice called out from the pool. Lydia looked up and saw that it was Isaac, who was throwing a volleyball back and forth with Malia._

_“Yeah, you’re missing out on all Isaac and Malia’s flirting,” Kira cooed, smirking as both of their cheeks turned red._

_Lydia rolled her eyes and kept them glued to the article on Brad and Angelina’s newest adoption. She only looked up from her magazine when felt herself being lifted out of her pool chair and thrown over someone’s shoulder._

_“Stiles!” she squealed, dropping the magazine and kicking and thrashing at the boy who was carrying her. “Put me down!”_

_Stiles laughed, spinning her around. “Whatever you say, Lyds.” He proceeded to toss her into the pool, causing a splash and a cry of anger from a now soaking wet Lydia._

_“Stiles Stilinski!” she screamed, crossing her arms. “I’m going to murder you.”_

_Stiles just smirked, jumping in the pool after her and causing a larger splash that only got her wet._

_“I hate you!” she shrieked, splashing him in the face as he only laughed harder._

_“Oh, please,” Scott smirked as he caught the volleyball from Isaac with speed only a werewolf could. “We all know you can’t stay mad at him for more than a minute.”_

_This time everyone laughed, including Lydia. “Dammit, Scott, why do you always have to be right?”_

_Stiles splashed Lydia again, ducking underwater quickly to avoid her wrath as she spewed out chlorinated water and glared at him once more._

_“Stiles!”_

Lydia sat up straight in her bed, her breathing heavy and her heart beating fast. She knew that it had been more than just a dream. It was a memory. The scene had been so vivid in her mind, as if it had happened just yesterday. There was no way her mind had just conjured up that scenario, which meant only one thing: her memories were already returning.

She just had to make sure she was right.

She picked up her phone and hit the number that she discovered when she got back her phone was her number one speed dial. Despite the time of night, she had a feeling that he would pick up.

“Lydia?” Stiles said on the other end, his voice sleepy. “Everything okay?”

“I’m fine,” Lydia replied instantly, relieved that he answered. “I think I just got part of my memory back.”

There was a brief pause before Stiles spoke again.

“What do you remember?” Stiles asked, his tone anxious but still calm.

“It was a dream, bit it felt so real, like it already happened,” Lydia explained. “Did we by any chance have a pool day at my house with all of our friends in which you threw me in the pool despite my many protests?”

“You-you remember that day?” Stiles asked, smiling. “That was barely a month ago. It was a Friday after school and we all decided to go to your house, but you refused to swim so I intervened.”

Lydia paused for a moment, remembering something her doctor had told her. “Stiles, the doctor said that doing things I used to do with my friends and family can help trigger memories. What’s something specific that we did a lot?”

“Um…” Stiles hesitated, Lydia waiting anxiously for his response. “We go to the movies a lot, I guess. I mean, there’s obviously not a ton to do here, so that’s kind of our go-to option.”

“Are you doing anything tomorrow night?” Lydia asked him, laying her head back down on the pillow. “If you’re not busy…maybe we could go see a movie? See if it triggers anything?”

There was a brief pause on the other end before Stiles replied. “That sounds great, Lydia. You should get to sleep, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

-

Lydia’s doorbell rang at nine o’clock on the dot. She wondered if Stiles was always this punctual or if it was just for her because he knew how much she hated being kept waiting. She opened the door and saw him standing in the doorway, his hands in the pockets of his dark jeans.

Perhaps it was because this was the first time her mind wasn’t completely cluttered with thoughts and worries since the accident, but this was the first time she looked at him- _really_ looked at him. She’d always known that he had a certain something about him that made him attractive, even more so after the accident, but looking at him now she couldn’t seem to find a single flaw. Between his dark hair that was currently gelled up and his tall (and considerably more muscular than she remembered) body, along with his warm brown eyes a smile that made her insides melt, he was literally perfect.

“You alright?” Stiles asked, looking a bit concerned by the strange look she was giving him.

“Yeah, great!” Lydia said with a smile, stepping outside and closing the door behind them. She hoped that he hadn’t realized she was totally checking him out, since she had been far from subtle.

She hopped in the passenger seat of Stiles’ Jeep, a routine that she had quickly become very familiar with. She remembered hating it at the winter formal, spending the entire ride wishing she was in Jackson’s Porsche instead. Now, she got an inexplicable feeling of warmth and reassurance whenever she sat there.

“So, what movie do you want to see?” Stiles asked her after a minute or two as they stopped at a red light.

Lydia pulled out her phone, where she’d looked up the current movie listings. “Hm…we could see What to Expect When You’re Expecting? I heard it’s funny.”

Stiles glanced at her for a second, his lips pressed together tightly, before shaking his head. “I heard it got really bad reviews. How do you feel about the Avengers?”

Lydia shrugged, twirling her hair with her fingers. “It doesn’t matter to me.”

Everything was perfectly normal and non-awkward from then on-that is, until they actually arrived at the movie theatre. Lydia was confused when Stiles went up to purchase his ticket and came back with two. She put her wallet back in her purse and raised an eyebrow at him.

“You didn’t have to pay for my ticket,” she said, crossing her arms.

There was a brief pause in which Stiles seemed to want to look at anything but her, his eyes focusing instead on his old, slightly damaged converse, before he passed her the small slip of paper. “You can pay for popcorn, deal?”

-

“Any particular reason you picked this movie?” Lydia asked, munching on her popcorn. The movie was already fifteen minutes in, and they were literally the only people in the theatre.”

“Well,” Stiles said, turning to face her, “I was going to suggest Magic Mike, but I didn’t want to spend the evening watching you drool over Channing Tatum. Also, this movie’s been out for a month and since it’s also a later show on a Wednesday, I figured there would be very few people here. I know you like it when the theatre’s almost empty.”

Lydia nodded in approval. She was constantly being surprised by how well Stiles seemed to know her-all her quirks, all her habits, all her likes and dislikes. “Well, you really _do_ seem to know everything about me. You’re wrong about the first part, though. While I do enjoy Channing Tatum, I heard that the movie we’re about to watch features Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston and more attractive men-and superheroes are much sexier than male strippers.”

Stiles let out a laugh, shaking his head. “Fine. Then I guess you won’t mind if I admit that my third reason for choosing this movie is named Scarlett Johansson.”

She threw a piece of popcorn at him, rolling her eyes. “You’re such a typical, hormonal teenage boy.”

“Hey, I wasn’t the one talking about my crush on Captain America!”

Lydia threw her head back against her seat, laughing at the boy beside her. Despite the fact that no more of her memories returned that night, she was able to say that she made some great new ones, and that was enough to let her fall asleep quickly with a smile on her face.


	6. Chapter 6

Lydia wasn’t sure if it was coincidence or just pure luck that in her first few weeks since the accident there had been no supernatural incidents. For all the stories Stiles, Scott and the others had told her about some of the horrible things that had happened, the worst definitely being Allison’s death, Lydia found it odd that Beacon Hills seemed exactly the same as she remembered it. Stiles had warned her it wouldn’t last long, but part of her wondered if he was exaggerating. It wasn’t until nine o’clock the Saturday after she’d gone to the movies with Stiles that she realized she was wrong.

She was sprawled out across Stiles’ bed with him on the floor next to her while they quizzed each other on the Civil War for the big history test on Monday. Study sessions like this had quickly become a regular thing for them, and Lydia assumed that it had been no different before her accident. It still amazed her how quickly she’d grown close to the boy she barely remembered knowing, but she felt so inexplicably at ease whenever she was with him and she had no idea why.

“Okay, how many states were part of the confederacy?” Lydia asked, fiddling with the pen in her hand.

Stiles sighed, rolling over on the floor and rubbing his eyes. They’d been at this for hours; first math, then biology, and finally history. “Seven.”

“Wrong,” Lydia said, “there were originally seven, but Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee joined after the war started.”

Stiles threw his head back in frustration, letting out a yawn.

“Of course you’re missing a year of school from your memory and you’re still way smarter than I am,” he complained. His phone vibrated, startling him slightly, and he pulled it out of his pocket. Lydia watched him read whatever was on the screen and start to frown, sitting up straight.

“What’s wrong?” Lydia asked him, frowning as she uncrossed her ankles and rolled over so she was sitting up.

“It’s Braeden, she’s hurt,” Stiles said worriedly, standing up and quickly replying to whoever had texted him.

Braeden…that name sounded familiar, but Lydia couldn’t match it to a face.

“Derek’s girlfriend,” Stiles elaborated, grabbing a sweater from his closet quickly. “She was shot by a hunter who was after Derek, she’s at the hospital now.”

“You’re going?” Lydia asked, not in an accusatory manner but simply out of curiosity. “I didn’t realize you were close with her.”

Stiles stopped himself in the doorway. He turned around and gave her a small, sad smile.

“I’m not,” he admitted, “but she’s part of our pack. I know you don’t remember it, but you are too. We’re obviously not all werewolves, but we’re still a pack; we’re still family.”

Lydia nodded slowly, trying to process this. She’s had a few conversations with Scott about the whole “pack” concept, but she hadn’t entirely grasped it yet. She’d hadn’t even met Derek or Braeden yet, but she figured if they were anything like Scott, Stiles and the others then they were probably great people and had certainly saved either her life or the lives of people important to her before.

“Then I’m coming with you,” Lydia decided, standing up and putting on her jacket.

Stiles looked like he was about to object for a moment, but he stopped himself and nodded wordlessly. She knew that he was aware of how hard she was trying to be a part of the pack and that she would do what she could to show her loyalty.

They drove across town to the hospital and entered the waiting room, where they found Scott, Kira, Malia, Isaac and a tall man who looked to be in his mid-twenties with dark hair who Lydia quickly identified as Derek from the description Stiles had given her.

“Hey, how’s Braeden?” Stiles asked worriedly, looking at Derek.

“She’ll be alright,” Derek assured him with a look of relief. “She’s out of surgery and she’s resting now.” He turned to face Lydia, who was standing there somewhat awkwardly. “Hi Lydia,” he said softly, smiling at her.

Lydia returned the smile, stepping into the circle of people, comforted by the familiar faces.

“Hi,” she replied, “I’m assuming you’re Derek?”

Derek gave a small nod. “It’s good to see you. How are you holding up?”

Despite not knowing this man, Lydia felt extremely comfortable around him. She wondered what their relationship had been like. Were they just allies, or were they friends too? She both guessed and hoped it was the latter.

“I’m okay,” Lydia responded. She nudged Stiles’ arm and smiled at Scott. “Thanks to these guys. I’m pretty lucky to have friends like these.”

Derek nodded again, though instead of looking at Lydia he looked at Stiles. They appeared to be communicating something silently, though Lydia wasn’t sure what it was.

“Well, since Braeden’s not allowed visitors just yet you might as well go home,” Derek instructed them. “I’ll let her known you all stopped by.”

“You’re sure?” Scott asked him, scratching the back of his head. When Derek nodded, Scott did the same. “Okay. See you later, man.”

-

Lydia wasn’t sure why, but as soon as she got into Stiles’ Jeep and he started driving towards her house, she had a pit in her stomach.

She wasn’t sure if the pit had to do with the fact that everywhere she went, people were giving Stiles sympathetic looks, or the fact that she was too nervous to bring it up. Stiles had been so unbelievably kind and patient with her since the accident and she didn’t want to cross any lines. She knew that if he wanted her to know what was going on, he would tell her, but that didn’t get rid of the feeling that he was keeping something from her. Something big. And let’s face it; patience was never her strong suit.

“Is it okay if I crash at your place?” Lydia asked as Stiles kept his eyes glued to the road.

Stiles looked at her in surprise, his expression changing from shock to confusion in a matter of seconds. “Are you-are you sure?”

“Uh, yeah,” Lydia muttered, breaking eye contact and running a hand through her perfectly curled hair. “My mom went out tonight and I’d rather not be home alone, if that’s okay with you.”

Of course, the part about her mother going out was a complete lie. She made a mental note to text her mom later and let her know that she was staying at Kira’s or Malia’s; she didn’t like lying to her mother either, but her mom had been surprisingly easygoing when it came to what she could and couldn’t do after the accident and she thought staying over at a guy’s house might be pushing it.

For a moment Stiles looked a bit hesitant, but if there was anything she’d learned about him over the past few weeks it was that he rarely denied her anything (especially when she smiled at him and used her fail proof method of puppy dog eyes.)

“Yeah, yeah, of course,” Stiles said, making a sharp U-turn.

They reached his house within five minutes, but before she got the opportunity to question him he announced that he was going to take a shower, and that she should make herself at home. As soon as he closed the door, she slipped out of her dress and into the hoodie he’d given her to change into, which was much too big but much more comfortable. She wasn’t entirely sure whether she should climb into his bed or go to the guest room, but she ultimately decided that he wouldn’t have a problem with the first option. After all, they were supposedly best friends. She was sure that they’d shared a bed platonically at some point.

She occupied herself by cleaning up all the textbooks they’d left out and even reorganizing her history notes, but she eventually grew tired and decided to give up on her mission to get the truth out of Stiles for the night. It was only when she was about to slide under his covers and call it a night that she remembered she needed to contact her mother so she didn’t worry when Lydia didn’t come home. She walked over to her purse and pulled out her cell phone, groaning as she realized that the battery was dead. She panicked for a second before realizing that she could just use Stiles’ phone instead. She knew that he wouldn’t care.

Lydia walked over to desk and picked up his phone. She unlocked it, relieved that he didn’t have a password, but before she could call her mother, something else caught her eye. His phone automatically opened to a text conversation with Scott. She normally would’ve been respectful of his privacy, but as soon as she saw her name, her curiosity overrode her morals.

 **Scott:** Want to spend the night here? I’m in the mood for some video games

 **Stiles:** Can’t, Lydia’s staying the night.

 **Scott:** What? Are you sure that’s a good idea? She still doesn’t know, right?

Lydia was now beyond curious. She knew she should stop reading, but the answer to the question she’d been wanting to ask for a while now was at her fingertips- _literally._

 **Stiles:** Of course not. I can’t tell her yet, she’s still adjusting and the only thing she remembers is some insignificant pool party.

 **Scott:** Dude, I know you’re trying to be respectful and everything, but this is killing you. I can literally sense how much pain you’re in when she’s in the room.

Lydia frowned, sitting down on the bed while her eyes scanned the words on the screen.

 **Stiles:** I’m just waiting for the right time.

She was completely confused as she reached the bottom of the conversation, the texts answering none of her questions and bringing up a hundred new ones. Until a new message popped up at the bottom of the screen.

 **Scott:** When exactly is the right time to tell her that the guy she barely remembers is actually her boyfriend?

Lydia dropped the phone onto Stiles’ blue comforter, her eyes widening as the words sunk in.

_Her boyfriend. Stiles was her boyfriend._

The more times the words replayed in her brain, the more they made sense. It explained everything. Stiles’ awkwardness every time she referred to him as her “friend,” everyone giving Stiles sympathetic looks, all of his secretiveness. She was wrong in assuming that they were best friends, they were more than that. Her head spinning at the speed of light, she got to her feet and picked up her purse, walking quickly out of his bedroom and towards her car before Stiles could emerge from the shower.

A minute later, when Stiles entered the room and saw that it was empty, he frowned.

“Lydia?” he called out, looking around with worry. “Did you go downst-?”

His eye caught his cell phone lying out on the bed, no longer on the desk where he’d left it, and his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. He picked up the phone and glanced at the screen, his eyes widening in realization as he read the conversation that was open on the screen, putting two and two together.

_“Shit.”_


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry that I took forever to update! School's been a pain in the ass, but hopefully I'll be posting more frequently from now on. I'd like to thank you all for reading this and leaving nice comments or messaging me on Tumblr, I really appreciate it. Hope you all enjoy. 
> 
> (PS. If you have any questions about when the next update will be, want to ask me something about the story or just want to chat, my Tumblr is mcmartinskis.tumblr.com :))

_Lydia sat in the Sheriff’s office next to Melissa, giving the woman a comforting smile despite the fact that she was equally worried and anxious._

_Stiles’ father paced the floor, shaking his head. “They should be back by now. What if something else went wrong?”_

_“Stiles called and said everything was okay and they’ll be home soon,” Lydia reminded the man gently. “I’m sure they’ll be here any minute.”_

_As if on cue, Stiles and Scott entered the room. They both had dishevelled hair, torn clothing and several cuts and bruises, but other than that they looked relatively unscathed. Before anyone could say or do anything, Lydia had thrown herself into Stiles’ welcoming arms and was holding him as tightly as she possibly could._

_“You’re okay,” she murmured in his ear, burying her face in his neck and breathing him in. “I was so worried about you.”_

_“I was worried about you too,” Stiles said, stroking her hair; a gesture that both comforted her and made her heart pound. “When my dad said you got attacked by berserkers, I thought…” He shook his head. “What matters is you’re okay.”_

_She broke apart from him to look at his face for a moment, smiling as she nodded her head. “I am now.”_

_During the past few moments, Lydia and Stiles had both forgotten that there were others in the room. It was only when the Sheriff cleared his throat that Lydia snapped back into reality and stepped out of the way so Stiles’ father could pull him into a tight hug. She walked over to Scott, who had only just let go of his mother, and hugged him briefly._

_“Thanks for bringing him home in one piece,” Lydia said to him, her voice barely more than a whisper. She was grateful that Scott was the only werewolf in the room, so nobody else could overhear her words._

_“You would’ve killed me if I hadn’t,” Scott chuckled, his voice no louder than hers, “I heard your heartbeat when he hugged you.”_

_Lydia’s cheeks turned a deep shade of red._

-

Lydia winced slightly as she took a large sip of coffee, the dark brown liquid still extremely hot. Despite the slight burning sensation, she thanked the girl beside her for the beverage and set it down on the table beside her.

“So you haven’t returned any of his calls?” Kira asked her, plopping down on her bed next to Malia, who was laying on her stomach with her chin resting on her hands and listening attentively.

Since her discovery the night before, Lydia had done everything in her power to ignore and avoid Stiles, and by extension, Scott (if there was one thing Lydia had learned about those two it was that they were a package deal and anything she said to Scott would surely be repeated to Stiles within minutes.) She contemplated ignoring all of her friends, since they had technically all kept the secret from her, but she decided against it. After all, if she wanted answers, she had to talk to _someone._

“No,” Lydia confirmed, shaking her head. “I don’t want to talk to him. I’m not ready to.”

Frankly, she wasn’t sure if she was madder at him or herself for not realizing what was going on sooner.

“I understand why you’re mad,” Kira said softly, “I would be pretty pissed at him too-at all of us. But…he really did think this was best for you.”

Lydia wrinkled her nose, tucking her legs behind her in the armchair she was sitting in. “How could hiding something like that be what’s best for me?”

Malia moved closer to Lydia, a slight frown on her face. “I know this sucks for you, Lydia, but did you think about what it’s been like for him? I mean, do you really think he _wanted_ to act like you two are just friends?”

Lydia went silent, processing Malia’s words as she took another sip of coffee (not that she needed the caffeine, it was already her third cup that day.)

“He wanted to give you a chance to adjust, Lydia. He wanted to be your friend and be there for you before putting you in an uncomfortable situation like the one you’re in now,” Kira added, glancing at Malia sadly.

Truthfully, Lydia had been too overwhelmed to even consider what Stiles must’ve been feeling. She’d thought that it was wrong and selfish of him to not tell her about their relationship, but the more that she thought about it the more she realized that it was really the most selfless thing he could’ve done. He had spent weeks with her-his girlfriend-pretending that they were nothing more than good friends.

Now that she was buried deep in her own guilt, she decided to change the subject.

“I had another dream last night,” she said slowly. “Another memory, I think.”

“What was it?” Malia asked eagerly, looking a bit relieved that Lydia had brought up something else.

“I was at the Sheriff station with Stiles’ dad and Melissa, and we were waiting for Scott and Stiles to come back from somewhere. I don’t know where they were, but we were all really worried. And they came back and I hugged Stiles and he told me that he was worried because I’d been attacked by-what are they called, berserkers?-and then Scott made some comment about how my heartbeat picks up when Stiles is around.”

“That was after we got back from Mexico,” Kira informed her. “For the second time, actually, not that it was any better than the first. Did Stiles tell you about the fight with Kate and Peter?”

Lydia bit her lip, trying to remember if he’d mentioned anything about that. Honestly, everything he’d told her had blurred together; all the fights and the monsters and the dangerous missions. Sometimes she was glad she _couldn’t_ remember it.

“I think so,” Lydia murmured. “How long ago was that? Stiles and I weren’t, uh…together, right?

“Not yet,” Malia confirmed. “It’s getting late, Lydia, I’ll give you a ride home. And I can drive you to school in the morning, but you’re going to have to face Stiles at _some_ point, so you should be prepared for that.”

She was aware that avoiding Stiles forever was impossible, but that didn’t mean that it was going to be any easier to see him at school the next day. But maybe what scared her the most was that, after talking to Malia to Kira, she wasn’t mad at him. She wasn’t even annoyed. She was nervous, but more than anything, she was curious. She wanted to know about everything-their first kiss, their first date, their first fight.

And there was only one person who could provide that information.

-

She only had to ring the doorbell once.

Stiles swung open the door, counting the bills in his hands carefully. “Alright, I-” he glanced up for the first time since opening the door, his eyes widening in shock. “Lydia?”

“Were you expecting someone else?” Lydia asked, folding her arms over her chest.

Stiles gaped at her for a moment, apparently struggling to speak.

“I thought you were the pizza guy. I mean, not because you look like a pizza guy, because I ordered a pizza and they said forty-five minutes but it’s been almost fifty and I’m really hungry. Not that I’m upset that you _aren’t_ the pizza guy-”

“Stiles,” Lydia cut him off, shaking her head and letting out a small laugh.

“Yeah, I’m shutting up now,” Stiles sighed, taking a few steps back. “Uh, come in. If you want to.”

Lydia nodded, tightening her grip on the strap of her purse and walking past him into the house. Her heels clicked against the hardwood floor, noticing that there were two places set on the kitchen table.

“Is someone here?” Lydia asked. “I didn’t see your dad’s car in the driveway.”

“Uh, yeah, it’s just Scott. He’s upstairs,” Stiles said, scratching the back of his head. “Do you want to stay too? If you haven’t eaten yet, or even if you have and you just want pizza…” He stopped himself from going off on a tangent again. “You probably came here for a reason, though.”

“I want you to tell me everything,” she said, quickly and firmly. “Everything that happened during the year that I can’t remember.”

Stiles looked confused, tilting his head to the side and leaning up against the kitchen counter. “Lydia, I already told you everything that happened.”

Lydia shook her head, sighing. “I don’t mean the supernatural stuff. Scott, Kira and the others can tell me about that just as well as you can. I want to know about us. Our relationship.”

Stiles was obviously surprised by how easily she brought up the subject they had yet to discuss. His face was impossible to read. Lydia couldn’t tell if he was upset, relieved, just surprised or all of the above.

“Are you sure?” Stiles asked, frowning. “You really want to know everything?”

“Obviously whatever I felt for you was a strong emotion.” She immediately felt a pang in her chest as he cringed slightly at the word ‘felt’ being in the past tense, but she decided to keep going. “Emotions trigger memories. The only two memories that I’ve gotten back since the accident were of you and me, that can’t be a coincidence. Maybe if you tell me more about us, more of my memory will return.”

Stiles looked conflicted. She figured that part of him was hesitant to talk to her about their relationship. Obviously, it would be hard for him to discuss under the circumstances. But she could swear she saw some hope in his face as well; hope that this could actually work, that she would remember everything, that she would remember _him._

“Hey, Stiles, is the pizza here-”

Scott walked in, freezing in place as his eyes landed on Lydia, obviously sensing the tension in the room.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” Scott said with a small smile in Lydia’s direction. “I’ll go back upstairs.”

“Don’t bother, I was just leaving,” Lydia said softly. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Stiles?”

They both knew what she was really asking: _are you in?_

After a short pause, Stiles nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”


End file.
